1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to printing devices and methods, and in particular, to a printing device capable of printing in three dimensions and a method of operation.
2. Description of the Background Art
There are a variety of different printing systems that employ different technologies such as laser printing, dot matrix and ink jet. These printing techniques have been included in various printers for the home or office. While the various prior art printing systems allow the user to control certain aspects such as print speed, print resolution, paper handling/flexibility and print color, most all printers are flat and the text is not raised on the paper.
The prior art does include printing techniques such as embossing or engraving for proving a tactile feel for the printing on the page. Typically, such embossing or engraving is a special process applied to the once the pages were printed. Since printing with embossing is a two stage process (ink first, emboss second), it is typically reserved for expensive off-site printing facilities. Some Braille embossed printers do exist which print Braille-only characters with embossing, or even Braille plus Ink characters as two separate processes within the same printer, but these devices are noisy (embossing) and inflexible (Braille-only).
Therefore, what is needed are systems and methods for printing that has a tactile feel or that is raised from the media (not only Braille) upon which it is printed in a convenient, fast, quiet device applicable for home and office use.